Youth attacks daughter, father

Our Special Correspondent

Rashbehari crossing, 6pm

A father and his daughter wait endlessly for an auto to Behala. The father complains. An auto driver turns up, pulls the college-going girl by her hand and tells the father " Tui Behala jabi? Amar saathey chal (Want to go to Behala? Come with me)".

When the father and the daughter try to lodge a complaint, around 40 auto drivers and others, all claiming to be "Trinamul", allegedly follow them and dare them to approach police.

The mob assures the duo that a complaint will land them in jail on a false charge.

The father and the daughter, who finally lodged a complaint despite the threat, were among the hundreds of commuters who had a harrowing time reaching their destinations because of Mamata Banerjee's show of strength.

Autos disappeared from several routes as the drivers flocked to Trinamul's Shahid Divas rally at Esplanade.

The father, in his 50s, and his daughter were on their way back home after meeting the principal of the girl's college. Their ordeal began after emerging from Kalighat Metro station around 6pm.

"They wanted to take an auto from the Rashbehari crossing to Behala. But most autos on the route were not plying," said an officer of Tollygunge police station.

The autos that were plying on the stretch were travelling till the Taratala crossing.

A traffic police officer who was on duty at the crossing said there was a long queue for autos.

The father mentioned in the complaint lodged with Tollygunge police station that he was asking the auto drivers who were plying their vehicles why they were not going till Behala.

"Suddenly, a man wearing a cap appeared in front of me and pulled me by the collar of my shirt. He shouted at me saying Tui Behala jabi? Amar saathey chal. He was reeking of alcohol. When my daughter came to my rescue, he pulled her by her arm," the father wrote in his complaint. "When my daughter managed to free herself, the youth started pulling her bag's strap."

None of the others waiting for an auto protested, according to witnesses. As the scuffle lingered some local people intervened.

"Suddenly, the man who attacked me and my daughter picked up a brick and hurled it at me. It hit my hand," the father said in his complaint.

On seeing the commotion, a traffic sergeant posted at the intersection came to the spot. "We did not wait for a written complaint. The assaulter was arrested on the spot," an officer said. The accused has been identified as Surojit Das.

The police presence did not scare away the drivers. A group of around 40, comprising drivers and others associated with the trade, kept threatening the father and the daughter while they were on their way to Tollygunge police station to file a complaint. None of them was arrested.